Lost Friendships
by booksbite3
Summary: AU. After many years of homeschooling Hinata returns to her old boarding school. After meeting some of her old friends Hinata learns that much has changed in her absence. Rated T just to be safe. Fixed.
1. Prologue

A/N Hello random people I have never met before. This is my new story I hope you like it. The pairings in this fic are Naruhina Nejiten Sasusaku Shikaino. I hope you like the story please remember to review. I'm sorry that the first time I posted the story I accidentally deleted half the authors notes. Sorry if the story is terrible.

The Beta for this story was AngelZ Of DarKness But is now Mirror Of Words.

Disclaimer I do not own Naruto.

Hinata Hyūga sat on her bed, face in her hands while she sobbed. She hadn't cried in years, but today she just couldn't hold back her tears anymore. She had just been accepted to Shinobi Martial Arts Academy, also known as SMAA. This would not be the first time that she had attended the academy; she had been there when she was only 6. During her time there, the unthinkable happened and her mother had died. Hinata decided to return home after the tragedy because the thoughts of the cruel things her classmates would say and do made her quiver in fear.

Her mother had been the one of the few people in her family who truly cared for her. She had been a role model for Hinata. Hinata had always dreamed about being as kind and caring as her mother someday. For a time, her life had been perfect. She had her mother and that was all she needed—but of course, her happiness hadn't last long.

She still remembered the day she was told about her mother's death. Hinata had been in her history class when suddenly the door to the classroom swung open.

Hinata's math teacher, Jiraiya, stood in the doorway, his face grim. "Will Hinata Hyūga please come with me!" He called out.

Young Hinata gulped as she had never been taken out of class by a teacher before. Hinata got up and followed her teacher as he led her out of the classroom. They continued to walk until they were outside under the shade of a lone tree.

"Hinata, there's something I need to tell you..." The white-haired man trailed off, not being able to tell Hinata the tragic news.

"What is it, Mr. Toad?" Hinata asked, puzzled by her teacher's strange behavior. Mr. Toad was the nickname that she had come up with for him due to his love of toads.

Jiraiya looked down at the little girl he had grown fond of. Hinata appeared so innocent, so carefree. It broke the man's heart to know that her carefree world was about to be torn to shreds. "It's about your mother," the toad lover replied, his heart sinking.

"What about mommy? Is she ok?" She asked worriedly, trying not to fear the worse.

Jiraiya knelt down to the little girl's level and looked at her in the eyes. "There was a car accident. Your mother did not survive." He said softly, pulling the girl in a gentle hug as she started sobbing upon hearing the tragic news.

The rest of the school soon caught wind of Hinata's heartbreaking news, and the bullying started. They would pick on her because of her mother's death. She never thought people could be so cruel. The only people who didn't pick on her were her friends and cousin Neji. Hinata eventually just couldn't take the bullying anymore so she left. When she got home, her father had reluctantly agreed to homeschool her.

Her father called her weak and even went so far as to take away her rights as to the family's wealth. Hinata had hoped that her father would be proud of her for getting onto a prestigious school like SMAA but his only reply to the news was, "What is there to be so excited about? You already dropped out of this school before. Your sister and cousin have gone there for years."

Her father's cruel words had finally broken through the emotional barriers that she had carefully constructed. She knew it was pathetic to cry over something so small but it wasn't just her father's scorn that brought her to tears. It was that she was alone.

Hinata had been alone for a long time, but she had always hoped that her father would accept her. However, all her father ever did was criticize her and tell her about how much better her sister was. Hinata didn't even have her cousin Neji to talk to anymore. Neji hadn't truly spoken to Hinata since his father was killed, saving her life. Hinata was going to spend a lot of time with Neji this year. Neji had been going to SMAA even before Hinata had started the first time. Sometimes Hinata would ask her cousin about her old friends but he would normally ignore her or give simple one-worded replies. Hinata loved her cousin dearly and still hoped that he could forgive her for the death of his father.

Hinata heard a knock on the door and looked up. Her room had a simple design, plain white walls with a small dresser and a twin sized bed. Bang! Bang! Bang! The knocking was getting so loud that Hinata was sure that the neighbors would complain. Hinata swiftly got up and opened the door. She found herself face to face with Neji.

"Your father told me to tell you that we booked our flight to the academy and that you should start packing." Hinata flinched at his emotionless demeanor. Neji turned to walk away but Hinata stopped him.

"Neji! I just wanted to say..." Hinata trailed off too nervous to speak.

Neji looked down at his younger cousin with what almost looked like compassion but his face expression soon hardened. "I'm busy, Hinata. I still need to pack. We can talk later." Neji walked away like he always did, leaving Hinata alone again.

Hinata retreated back into the safety of her room, shutting the door behind her. She walked over to her dresser and picked up a picture frame that was on top of it. The picture inside the frame was a photo of her and her old SMAA friends. She mentally listed their names: Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, Tenten Flower, Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, Rock Lee, Shikamaru Nara, Chōji Akimichi, Sasuke Uchiha, and last but definitely not least, Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata's old crush. Hinata blushed at the thought of Naruto—even after all these years, she still had a small crush on the boy. Neji was in the picture, as well. The picture was taken in front of the school they were all smiling, arms linked. Hinata smiled; they all looked so happy.

'I hope they still want to be friends.'

"I wonder if they'll recognize me?"


	2. Chapter 1

A/N Sorry it took so long for me to post this chapter. I had a hard time finding a new Beta after my old one quit. Luckily I found an amazing replacement! I would like to thank kika04, DanceAnna, and Rayline Li, for following this story! I hope you all or at lest some of you like the chapter.

The Beta for this story is Mirror Of Words.

Disclaimer I do not own Naruto.

Hinata walked out of Bangor International Airport, Maine, USA. Neji walked beside her, scanning their surroundings with his eyes. Hinata's sister, Hanabi, followed her big sister and older cousin. Hinata's father had scheduled a limo to pick them up. "The limo is late," stated Neji in his usual emotionless voice. Hinata did not respond but instead looked shyly down at the ground. After a couple of minutes of studying the ground Hinata decided to look up at her surroundings. There was nothing very interesting about her surroundings; the building she was standing in front of was just an average gray building. "Finally," Hanabi sighed. The limo had just pulled up in front of them.

The limo ride was uneventful. Hinata had seen many limos and was not very fond of them. Hinata, unlike her sister, had never been the kind of girl who liked to flaunt her wealth. Hinata went out of her way to look like any other girl. She never wore designer clothes even though her father wished her to. Hinata preferred to wear a an old cream-colored hoodie, a simple white long sleeve shirt and a pair of worn out jeans.

Hinata stepped out of the limo and froze at this sight of her old school. SMAA consisted of five buildings. There were two plain white rectangle-shaped dormitory buildings: one for the girls and one for the boys. One of the buildings is the main school where the normal classes are held. The main school building is a massive red brick structure with a picture glass window in the front. The fourth building is the school dojo. The dojo looks exactly the same as the dormitory buildings from the outside. The fifth and last building is the staff dormitory. The staff dormitory looks like the other dormitories except it is red instead of white and the dormitories and the dojo are arranged in a semicircle around the main school building.

Memories kept flashing through her head—some good, some bad. "Are you going to stand there all day?" asked Neji, frowning. Hinata did not answer but instead pulled her hood up. Hinata followed her sister and cousin down the sidewalk that led to the front entrance to the main school building. There were several huge maple trees in the school yard. Hinata liked to be able to see trees because she lived in the city and rarely ever saw them. Once they reached the glass front doors of the school Neji surprised Hinata by holding the door for her. Hinata stared at her cousin, stunned, before smiling in thanks and walking though the open door.

The inside of the building was nothing special. The walls were white with blue lockers lining some walls. There was the occasional class room door. Some artwork done by students were displayed on one wall. A flicker of movement caught Hinata's eye. She turned and saw the check-in desk. The check-in desk was just a plastic foldable table with a cardboard sign that read "Please check in here". There was a big man with long, unruly white hair hunched over the desk looking at a list trying to find the name of the student who was checking in. 'No, it can't be,' Hinata thought. The man's face wasn't visible but he looked just like Jiraiya. Neji grabbed Hinata's arm and led her towards the desk. The other kid who had checked in finished thanked the white-haired man and walked off.

"We're here to check in," Neji said in a demanding voice once they reached the desk. The man looked up. Hinata gasped. The man was in fact her old teacher Jiraiya. Hinata had believed the he found a new job at a different school. He had always said that he wanted to get away from his coworker Orochimaru.

Jiraiya looked up and smiled widely at Hinata. "I'm glad to see you finally decided to come out of isolation!" Hinata returned the man's smile.

"It's good to see you. I didn't think you would be here. I thought you were taking another job," Hinata told her old teacher in her normal shy tone.

"I was going to but I couldn't leave my students in the hands of that sadistic maniac."

Hanabi tapped her foot impatiently. "Can you please check us in?" Hinata's sister asked in a falsely sweet voice. By the sudden sour exertion on her old teacher's face, Hinata could tell that he didn't buy her sister's sweet act for a second. "Alright, just let me look," the old man grumbled as he searched the list for the three kids' names. "Aha, I found you!" The toad lover exclaimed triumphantly. Jiraiya took out an old shoe box and pulled out three pairs of keys. "Your room numbers are on your keys," he said, handing them each a key.

...

Hinata had been wondering the dormitory halls for about 15 minutes and still could not find her room. Her backpack and suitcase started to feel heavier. "Um, are you lost?" Hinata quickly whirled around to face the speaker. The speaker was none other than Sakura, Hinata's old childhood friend. The blood drained from Hinata's face. Sakura's appearance had changed a lot since Hinata last saw her. Sakura's once long, pink hair was now short. She had grown a lot and wore a long sleeve red shirt and a pair of blue jeans. Sakura no longer wore the ribbon that her best friend Ino had given her, instead wearing the only mandatory school accessory SMAA had, a forehead protector. Sakura's forehead protector had the leaf symbol on it. There were several symbols to choose from but the pink haired girl always loved the leaf.

"Are you ok? You look kinda pale." Sakura questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Hinata shook her head. It was obvious that Sakura did not recognize her. "S..s..sorry," she stuttered.

"Sorry? There is nothing for you to be sorry for. Are you having trouble finding your room?" Sakura asked, smiling. Hinata nodded, smiling in return. "Ok, just let me see your number and I can get you to your room in flash!" Hinata handed over her room key. "Room 24. Follow me!" Hinata followed her old friend down the hall.


	3. Chapter 2

A/N sorry it took so long for me to update! I hope the chapter is worth the wait. I would like to thank One Sassy Cinderella, MYK-ON, Rose Tiger, and tsukihime4869 for following this story. I would also like to thank MYK-ON for favoriteing this story. I do know that favoriteing is not a real word. Thank you to all the wonderful people who review it really makes my day :)

The Beta for this story is Mirror Of Words.

Disclaimer I do not own Naruto.

Hinata didn't know what to feel as she followed her old friend down the hall. 'Should I call her my friend? She doesn't even recognize me.' Hinata silently pondered her problem. 'It has been a long time since we saw each other, I'm sure she'll remember me eventually!'

"Oh, I forgot to ask. What's your name?"

Hinata snapped out of her thoughts and looked at the pink-haired girl. 'Here I go.' Hinata had opened her mouth to speak when—

"Sakura! Sakura, wait up!" Hinata looked over her shoulder and saw a boy with spiky blonde hair wearing a bright orang jacket and a pair of battered jeans running towards her and Sakura.

"Just keep walking and act like he isn't there," Sakura whispered to Hinata speeding up their pace, but Sakura's efforts were in vain because the boy soon caught up to them.

"Hey Sakura, I'm so happy to finally see you again! Its been such a long summer without you around!" Sakura stopped and faced the boy.

"Naruto, can you please leave me alone!"

Hinata froze and then slowly turned around. She was met with a pair of blue eyes that were all to familiar. There stood Naruto, her old friend and secret crush. Naruto had grown a lot since she had last seen him. He was several feet taller; when they were younger, she and Naruto had been roughly the same high, but now he was slightly taller than her. Hinata couldn't help blushing slightly but Naruto was too caught up with Sakura to notice.

"Why do want me to leave you alone so bad? We've known each other for years, can't I talk to you?" Naruto asked in a whiny voice like one a small child would use when begging for something.

"I'm busy Naruto! I have to help a new girl to her dorm, plus I haven't finished unpacking yet." Naruto looked at Sakura like a lost puppy and still hadn't spared a glance at poor Hinata.

"Fine, I'll let you settle in first, then we talk."

This pushed Sakura over the edge. "You'll let me settle in," she said calmly before completely losing control. "YOU'LL LET ME SETTLE IN! You don't get to let me do anything. I will do what I want when I want to! Come on new girl were going!" Sakura grabbed Hinata's and dragged her down the hall in a huff. it didn't take long for Sakura to find the shy girl's dorm.

"Here we are!" Sakura announced pointing to a door on the left of the hall. "I wish I could stay and chat but I have to get back to my dorm." Hinata nodded shyly at Sakura and thanked her before Sakura went back to her own dorm.

Hinata stood outside the dorm door, gathering her courage. After a minute or so she reached out and opened the door.

The dorm was plain For the most part. There were the normal white walls, there was on window looking out over the school yard. On one side of the room there was a bunk bed, and standing next to the bunk bed was a girl.

The girl was facing away from Hinata, she had her suitcase laid on the bottom bunk and was currently unpacking. She was tall and had long blonde hair pulled back in a pony tall. She was wearing a purple bell shirt, and a pair of black yoga pants. The girls exposed midriff was wrapped tightly in bandages, and her forehead protector was wrapped around her waist like a belt.

Hinata cleared her throat before announcing her presence. "H... Hi," she just managed to get the words out without fainting from anxiety. The blonde girl whirled around startled by the sudden noise but visibly relaxed when she saw Hinata.

"Oh, you must be my new roommate. I'm Ino, welcome to SMAA!" Hinata was starting to wonder how she kept on running into her old friends.

"I'm...Hinata."

Ino's eye widened before she charged forward and enveloped her in a hug. "Hinata, I can't believe it's really you!" Ion let go of her friend and stepped back. "It is you right, because if it turns out that I'm wrong and I just hugged a total stranger, well then that would just be awkward."

Hinata smiled and laughed in relief. "It's me."

'I'm so glad that at lest someone remembers me. I wonder if anyone else will.'

"So what made you come back to SMAA?" Hinata had to think carefully before answering her question.

What had made her come back after all these years? Had she simply wanted to be with her friends? No, it was more than that, she came back not just to see her friends again but also to prove herself. She wanted to prove that she could be just as talented as her sister. She wanted her father to notice her. Naturally Hinata didn't tell any of that. "I guess I just got lonely." Ino gave her old friend a sideways glance, clearly not believing her, but she decided not to press Hinata.

"So how have things been?" asked Hinata, curious about her all friends lives. Ino looked down at her feet, cheery mood suddenly forgotten. Hinata started to worry— could something have happened to her friend in her absence? "Well things have been ok, I guess," Ino muttered half heartedly. Hinata could tell that something was off, but she knew how stubborn Ino could be and that it wouldn't help to push her.

To Zari A. I hope the story is getting better, I've done my best to make the story less choppy. I really appreciate that you took the time to review. I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	4. Chapter 3

A/N Hi everyone sorry it took so long for me to update! I honestly can't believe that people actually seem to like this story. I would like to thank ilaughlovelivesong, ChilledKitsune, Ironinkpen, and Midnight-The Angel of Darkness, for following this story. Also a big thank you to anyone who reviewed!

The Beta for this story is Mirror Of Words.

Disclaimer I do not own Naruto or the song Missing by Evanescence.

Hinata sat quietly on her bed and listened to Ino telling her about how the school changed in her absence. The thing that frightened her the most about her friend's stories was that she barely mentioned any of their old friends, not even Ino's best friends Sakura, Choji and Shikamaru. After listening to a particularly intense rant about a teacher, she had decided she would ask about it, but that's when they heard a knock on the door.

"Ino it's me, Choji!"

Ino rolled her eyes. "What do you want Choji!"

"Well right now I want you to open this door, and another bag of potato chips." Ino let out an exasperated sigh, before she walked over to the door and opened it.

In the doorway stood Choji. He had grown a great deal since Hinata had last seen him. It had been a long time of course and change was to be expected. She felt a pang in her heart at the thought that she may never see the people she knew again or at least not the way she remembered them.

Choji walked into the room and sat down on Ino's bed, munching a bag of chips. Ino crossed her arms. "Now tell me what you want Choji!"

He looked up at the blond, a pained expression on his face. "I came to tell you he's sorry," he told her in a quiet tone. Ino snorted.

"If he is so sorry why didn't he come tell me himself?" She asked in a broken voice, eyes trained on the floor.

"You know him. He's just being stubborn. But I can tell he misses you, and he might not say it but he is sorry!"

Ino looked up eyes flashing with anger. "Leave!" Choji looked at his friend and let out a defeated sigh, there was no point arguing with her. He slowly got up and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Ino rester her head in her hands for a moment, then turned to Hinata. "Sorry you had to see that," Ino apologized.

Hinata gave her friend a sympathetic smile. "I understand. Do you want to talk about it?"

The blond shook her head. "I think the best thing to do is just not think about it." Ino fiddled with her hand nervously, making Hinata sure she was hiding some thing. "Do you mind if I put on some music while we finish unpacking?"

Hinata shook her head. "I do not mind at all!"

Ino walked over to her iPod and attached it to a speaker. The music started to flood the room.

_Please, please, forgive me_  
_But I won't be home again_  
_Maybe someday you'll look up_  
_And barely conscious, you'll say to no one_  
_"Isn't something missing?_

Hinata's eyes widened at her friends choice of song, it was the song Hinata herself sometimes listened to when she was feeling really depressed.

_You won't cry for my absence, I know_  
_You forgot me long ago_  
_Am I that unimportant?_  
_Am I so insignificant?_  
_Isn't something missing?_  
_Isn't someone missing me?_

'I wonder if anyone would notice if I left?' Hinata thought to herself.

_Even though I'm the sacrifice_  
_You won't try for me, not now_  
_Though I'd die to know you love me_  
_I'm all alone_  
_Isn't someone missing me?_

Hinata found herself starting to hum along to the song.

_Please, please, forgive me_  
_But I won't be home again_  
_I know what you do to yourself_  
_I breathe deep and cry out_  
_"Isn't something missing?_  
_Isn't someone missing me?"_

Ino looked over at her friend. "Do you know this song?" She asked curiously. Hinata nodded.

_Even though I'm the sacrifice_  
_You won't try for me, not now_  
_Though I'd die to know you love me_  
_I'm all alone_  
_Isn't someone missing me?_

'At lest Ino remembers me.' Hinata told herself with a small smile.

_And if I bleed, I'll bleed_  
_Knowing you don't care_  
_And if I sleep just to dream of you_  
_I'll wake without you there_  
_Isn't something missing?_  
_Isn't something_

'I hope they remember.'

_Even though I'm the sacrifice_  
_You won't try for me, not now_  
_Though I'd die to know you love me_  
_I'm all alone_  
_Isn't something missing?_  
_Isn't someone missing me?_

The song ended and Ino looked picked up her iPod. "Oh no! we're going to be late for lunch!" Ino exclaimed, grabbing Hinata's wrist and dragging her out the door.

Hinata hid behind Ino as they walked into the cafeteria. Most of the other students were already there, and Hinata felt like she would faint. There were too many people watching her!

The other students studied the new kid. It wasn't rare to get new students but it was rare for some to join the school at Hinata's age. She could hear the rumors spreading like wild fires. "Maybe she bought her way in!" "Maybe she a prodigy we stole from a competitor!" "I bet she's an alien!" The stories just kept on getting stranger and stranger.

Ino led her over to a table of rambunctious teens. She sat down next to a familiar looking boy. "Hinata, this is my boyfriend Sasuke." Hinata looked at her friend in complete shock.


	5. Chapter 4

A/N I'm really sorry it took me this long to update. I have had a really bad writers block and just can't seem to like anything that I write. I hope this chapter is ok and not complete trash. I would like to thank everyone who reviewed this story. I would also like to thank anyone followed or favorited this story.

The bata for this story is mirror of words.

Disclaimer I do not own Naruto

Hinata did her best to fit in at Ino's table but she just couldn't. It didn't feel right. After a couple minutes of what felt like torture Hinata excused herself from the table saying she needed to do some more unpacking. As she walked down a silent hallway Hinata couldn't help but wonder how things had changed so much. There had been a time that if you had asked her she would have said that Ino would end up with Shikamaru, but now it was apparent that fate had other plans.

"Hinata!" Yelled a voice, and a couple of seconds later a hand wrapped around her wrist. Hinata turned around and found herself face to face with none other than Choji. She looked shyly down at the ground. "Choji is that really you?" The food loving boy took her words as confirmation of her identity, letting go of her wrist and hugging her.

"I can't believe you are back!" He exclaimed letting her go from his embrace. Hinata smiled.

"It's good to see you again," she said almost in a whisper.

"Yeah it's good to see you to, but we can talk about that later? Right now I have somewhere to take you." Hinata simply stared at her friend in confusion as he started to drag her down the hallway.

Hinata did her best to keep up with the fast pace that Choji ran down the halls at. After a minute of running they reached a line of old beat-up lockers. Choji walked up to two particularly battered lockers and pulled them away from the wall, revealing a large rectangular shaped hole. He pulled a flashlight out of his pocket, turned it on and pointed it at the hole, revealing a flight of stairs.

Hinata looked around nervously as Choji led her down the stares. She jumped a little when she thought she heard something scuttle by her in the darkness. "Ch... Choji, what is this place?" She asked, apprehension evident in her voice.

"This used to be the basement. It flooded a couple of years back so instead of repairing it the school decided to build a new one and just cover this up. Me and some other kids found it a while back, fixed it up a bit, and started to use it as meeting place."

Hinata looked at her friend in wonder. Choji had never been the hard-working type when she knew him and it was hard to imagine him doing something like repairing a flooded basement. "Who do you mean when you say we?" She asked. Choji's face seemed to droop.

"Only me and Rock Lee most of the time, but sometimes Kiba and Shino help."

If it was possible Hinata felt even more confused. "Help? Help with what?"

Choji face instantly broke into a smile. "It's a little something I like to call operation lost friendships!"

Hinata was intrigued. "What is operation lost friendships?"

Before Choji could answer her they reached the bottom of the stares. The old basement smelled strongly of incense, the room was almost completely bare with only a couple of chairs. Even though it wasn't much to look at Hinata liked the room. Choji grabbed her attention again when she heard him loudly munching on a bag of chips.

"Choji you never answered my question."

"I'll explain when Lee gets here."

A couple of minutes earlier, Tenten had walked down the hall away from the cafeteria in a huff. She couldn't believe that stupid boy! Did he have to act so arrogant?

"Tenten please forgive me!" Yelled her old friend Rock Lee running down the hallway to catch up to her. She sighed, this was all his fault but like always she just couldn't stay mad at him. What had the boy done that had angered her? Well he had forced her to talk to the one person she hated the most, Neji Hyūga.

Tenten stopped in her tracks and grudgingly waited for Lee to catch up with her. When he reached her Lee fell to his knees in front of her. "I'm so sorry Tenten!" He apologized, in his typical over emotional way. Tenten couldn't mange to stifle a small laugh. Seeing him this way just brought back so many good memories, like the time his adoptive father Guy took her Neji and him on a trip to the Amazon jungle. Lee had managed to lose his share of the food and had spent the whole time apologizing and doing ridiculous tasks to impress Guy.

"Get up Lee! You don't need to apologize. I know you were just tying to help, but I think it's time you accept that things have changed. Me and Neji just aren't friends anymore."

Lee leapt up and gave her a determined look. "You're right, things have changed, but that doesn't mean that I can't make things right! You and Neji will be friends again, you'll see!"

Before Tenten could reply to her friend's declaration, he was already running down the hallway. "See you later Tenten!" He shouted over his shoulder.

Lee made his way to the secret entrance to the old basement. The only thing on his mind was 'I'm late! I'm late!' He was supposed to meet Choji for a meeting 10 minutes ago. To most people being 10 minutes late was not the end of the world, but Lee was not most people. Lee rushed down the stares and saw something that sent his spirits soaring. Hinata was back, maybe he could finally get his friends back together again.


End file.
